What do you do with your small pets when traveling

[pvrick]

Just starting our RV adventures. We have two small dogs and a cat who will be traveling with us.

How many of you put your pets in a crate when traveling, or do you just let them stay in their bed or on the couch?

REalize it is safest to have in a crate, but even in my 40Ft Safari, not certain where I would put the crate.

Would appreciate your comments and experience.

thanks

Rick

[BigSkyBob]

Charlie the Beagle rides/sleeps on the sofa and seems happy. He has a bowl for water about half full on the floor.

[WheelingIt]

We started out with a crate for the 2 cats but it freaked them out too much. Discovered they were much (much) more comfortable under the bed covers so that's where they always travel now. I just make sure they're secure when the slides come in, then they go straight under the covers and fall asleep.

[Lightseekers]

I realize it is not very safe, but Sadie likes to ride on the dash. Sometimes she sleeps and other times she watches the other cars passing us. Chloe is either asleep at DW feet or in DW's lap.

[raceguy549]

Rick:

We travel with our 12 year old Westie "Charlotte". She has been RVing since she was 8 weeks old. She doesn't even have a crate as my wife would not hear of crating a dog. (I decided early on that was NOT a mountain worth dying on.) Charlotte somewhat grudgingly shares the passenger seat with whoever is occupying it as long as they behave and share nicely. Sadly my wife left this life a bit over 7 years ago. My SO had to learn early about Charlotte's desire to ride in the lap of the passenger and has accommodated that quite nicely. A couple of years ago we upgraded to a DP that has a "buddy seat". That's a passenger seat that's about 1/3 wider than the driver's seat, which I believe came about for the express purpose of allowing people to share a seat with a dog or cat. (Probably grandchildren with grandmas also but I can already feel the heat coming from that suggestion.) Now Charlotte allows the passenger to sit beside her which is nice for them. Charlotte sleeps with us as she does at home unless we have guests and then she has been known to sleep around a bit.

Based on observations it is my opinion that one of the reasons people choose to RV is that they can take their furry loved ones with them. It certainly is true in my case.

The answer you seek is most likely going to reveal itself as you travel with your pets. My experience is that some will travel well and some won't. We once had a pooch that got so panicky I had to harness her to furniture or she'd literally get under my legs as I tried to drive. Not fun. Others are a joy. Happy traveling, buddy.

Raceguy

[RoyM]

Our toy poodle wants to spend most of her time riding in DW's arms with her chin resting on the door sill watching the world go by, she will lay for a time on the seat between us. I would much prefer to strap her in but the missus won't hear of it. She has done a couple of three point landings under the dash, two knees and a nose. What raceguy said about the mountain, it's not a battle worth picking.

[RickO]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lightseekers I realize it is not very safe, but Sadie likes to ride on the dash. Sometimes she sleeps and other times she watches the other cars passing us. Chloe is either asleep at DW feet or in DW's lap.

Ditto this and Raceguy's post. Our two Westies (4 and 14) spend 80% of a travel day in their beds on the dash of our DP. The other 20% is doing the copilot seat dance with DW... AND... our 13 year old sheltie will sleep on the couch. Bedtime is a challenge as you might imagine but I just can't imagine finding room for 3 crates.

Rick

[Fred and Bonnie]

Cats find their own safe places.

fred

[Caemlyn]

I travel with 4 Great Danes.... three are crated and the old guy rides on the floor next to me. And yes, I had to take out a bit of furniture to accommodate 3 XXL dog crates, but I'd miss the dogs more than I'd ever miss the furniture ;-)

[w6pea]

He goes with us! He has us both well trained.
Seriously he has his own food and bowl, he sleeps where he wants in the RV.

[justimagination]

Rick.........from the 1 thru 10 replies I just read, take your pick, they say it all about our 4 legged friends. Just give it a little time, they will let you know where they will ride, trust me.
Last May on our annual trip to Myrtle Beach, we decided to take our new baby Cockatiel. He was secure in his cage but not long after he was on DW shoulder watching traffic. They all have their little place in our lives. Good luck, travel safe.
David G.

[DFR]

The cats stay home, too panicky (sp?). The terrorists (terriers) are dashriders mostly and sleep where they want, they trained us very well. We also bought the RV to make travelling with pets more convienient. A decision we have not regretted.

[MikenAmber]

Our pet Lilbit small dog travels with us, he knows when it is time to go camping. He rides in Mom's lap and it's his couch in the rig. We wouldn't leave home without him. Our older Sheltie stays at home, due to his age almost 17, in the care of our youngest son.

[Madame Boomer]

We travel with our two Shelties....wouldn't dream of leaving them at home for short trips...and they wouldn't allow us to leave without them!

In our 02 Dodge, we had a small back seat and our AnnaBelle was terribly afraid of falling off the seat into the floorboard - which has happened upon occasion when an idiot would pull out in front of us and RustyJC had to slam on the brakes!

Crates are wonderful, but not an option when you pull a 5th wheel - so our only recourse was to put them in the back seat!

Now we have a 2011 Dodge with full rear seat accomodations. We lift the seats and put down foam pads and blankets covering the entire area of the floor where it is safer..........and cooler because they have their own a/c vent right there!

Coby falls asleep as soon as we put the truck in "drive" - it now takes AnnaBelle about 5 minutes to find her nesting spot. Never hear a peep out of either of them now..........

and we feel better knowing they aren't going to fall anywhere!

Sandy